Open petition: Modernise the law on mental health and criminal responsibility

Created by Miriam Virgo
Closes on 19 April 2027

Review and reform the law on criminal responsibility in England and Wales so courts can consider whether a recognised mental, developmental, neurological or personality disorder substantially impaired a defendant’s rational judgment, understanding or behavioural control.

The current insanity rules date from 1843 and lag behind modern psychiatric understanding. Although prosecutors can consider mental health when deciding whether prosecution is in the public interest, we want a stronger statutory framework requiring relevant expert evidence to be considered before prosecution and, where a case proceeds, when determining criminal responsibility, not only at sentencing. Diagnosis alone should not be an automatic defence.

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